Saturday, October 30, 2010

Ring The Alarm playlist, BaseFM, Sat Oct 30

Billy Cole - Extra carefully
Okyerema Asante - Sabi
Ladi 6 - Walk right up - Parks remix
DJ Vadim - Soldier
Manasseh  -Natural dub 12" mix
Lee Scratch Perry - Money comes and money goes
Gregory Isaacs - Night nurse / Night nurse dub
AIFF - Let it roll
The Cals - Amazon bossa nova
The Emotions  -From toys to boys
Rodriguez - Sugarman
Kendra Lou and the miracles - Be kind to your mind - Red Astaire remix
Staple Singers/Curtis Mayfield - Chase (off "Let's do it again" OST)
Nona Hendryx - Transformation
Beat conductor - Hottest dub
Keith Lawrence  -Style and fashion
Junior Reid - Rappa pam pam
Gregory Isaacs - Mind yu dis
Colm K and the freestyle mellowship - Dancing skulls - main mix
Austin Faithful - I'm in a rocking mood
Jackie Mittoo - Stereo freeze
Oogun - Version for version
RSD - Corner dub
Philip Cohran - New frankiphone blues
Plumstead radical club - I shot the sheriff

Sunday, October 24, 2010

Holidaze


This blog is on holiday for the next month or so, but I'm still posting music links via Twitter and also on Dubdotdash Extended Version on Tumblr. Check em out.

Saturday, October 23, 2010

Ring The Alarm playlist, BaseFM, Sat Oct 23

Steel n skin - Afro punk reggae dub
Lightning head - 2nd line stomp
Groove Corp meets Twilight Circus w Luciano - What we got to do now
Prof Oz - Waves and skank  - Grant Phabao mix
Augustus Pablo - East of the river Nile
Barrington Levy - Looking my love dub
The Clash - Return to Brixton - Jeremy Healey remix
Four tet - As serious as your life
Belleruche - 56% proof
Sharon Jones and the Dapkings  -This land is your land
Roy Ayers - Evrybody loves the sunshine
Colman bros - She who dares - big band original
Loopless - Pink blue hotel
James Brown - Blind man can see it - full version
Tappa Zukie - Freak
Bonny Pointer - Free me from my freedom
Booker T and the MGs - Melting pot
Magic circle express - Magic fever
Oliver Daysoul and Oddisee - Foolish/Foolish inst
Orgone -I get lifted
House shoes - The makings
Fat Freddys Drop vs Celeda - Midnight Marauders - Le Freak Selector mashup
New age steppers - Fade away

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Scratchy old music

There's been some great reading pop up recently on the issue of music archives, and saving our musical history from disappearing. Andrew Dubber has a site called Deleting Music, which is a sober reality check. One of my favourite posts there is about Uchenna Ikonne...

"Nigerian news outlet 234Next has a great article about Uchenna Ikonne, a man who is preserving and archiving the history of Nigerian popular music of the past 50 years – and reissuing it on his label, Comb & Razor Sound. Some really great and noteworthy things about US-based Uchena Ikonne...

1) He’s a real digger
I remember when I first started telling people in Nigeria that I am looking for old records and stuff like that.
They told me, “You can’t find that kind of thing in Nigeria today.” My reply was “No, you mean YOU can’t find it… I can!” And they would say “Ha! You won’t see that sort of thing in the market o!” The market? Are you kidding? Who is looking at the market? To find this stuff, you need to go ‘under’ the market! For months on end I would be rummaging through dark and filthy storage spaces, day in and day out. Getting sinus infections from the dust and mould… digging through urine-soaked garbage and getting bitten by rats. And in the end, when I show all the material I’ve gathered, people always ask “How did you find this stuff?” as if I’m a magician. But really, it’s all right here under our noses!
Go read the rest of Dubber's piece here. It's fantastic.

 Simon Grigg writes on "the quickly evaporating New Zealand musical past." He talks about setting up a Music Archive. We already have the National Library collecting NZ recordings, but this is more about preserving not only recordings but master tapes and associated material and making recordings available to the public.

Simon has a shockingly big list of local releases post-1974 that are out of circulation or in very poor quality CD reissues  - things like  Miltown Stowaways and the Unsung Records catalogue, and there's at least 8 albums from the Deep Grooves label on there too, which, if people could gte to discover them would prove that Auckland did the funky-regggae-dance-thang over a decade before the Welly reggae sound leapt onto the scene.

Russell Brown added to the topic, pointing out there's  a discussion document currently doing the rounds amongst stakeholders, including Rianz, on this very issue.

Andrew Schmidt at Mysterex has a piece on saving our musical history, worth a read.

"Slice of Heaven, the new Te Papa permanent installation, is a frustrating space for a historian concerned with twentieth century New Zealand heritage and identity and music's role in it....  Our music history is there but it begins (and ends) with 1950s rock n roll. They clearly didn't speak to Chris Bourke. Blam Blam Blam’s No Depression in New Zealand can be heard behind one early 1980s film segment (but not the Springbok Tour one)..."

A lot of the discussions around this area remind me of what I love about Wax Poetics magazine - they dedicate their mag to uncovering recordings and delving deep into the story behind them - who recorded them, who played what...  A lot of that is solving mysteries around records while the folk involved are still living.


And with that, I'm off for a blog holiday. Blogging will resume in a month. Maybe. I'll still be posting music links, MP3s and so on over on Twitter, if you're up on that particular malarkey, tune in.

Righto.

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Kiiw rock chicks


Hot on the heels of the launch of Chris Bourke's book Blue Smoke (on NZ popular music from the end of world war one to 1964), is a book that focuses on local female musicians, called Kiwi Rock Chicks, Pop Stars and Trailblazers.

From the Otago Daily Times interview with author Ian Chapman...

"Spanning 50 years, Kiwi Rock Chicks, Pop Stars & Trailblazers features a broad range of artists, including Gin Wigmore, Alannah Currie, Sharon O'Neill, Margaret Urlich, Bic and Boh Runga, Hollie Smith, Anika Moa, The Yandall Sisters, [Coco Solid, Ladi6, Minuit,] Moana Maniapoto, Beaver and punk singer Zero, all of whom provide first-hand insights on everything from industry frustrations and highlights to songwriting methodologies. Each chapter is completed by a discography and awards list.

"They are a very diverse lot,"  Chapman says. "When the book was first mooted, I was going to have a lot more authorship of it," Chapman explains.

"I would have been writing about the women and I would have had far less direct input.
When I received all this enthusiasm from the women I had approached, I thought the focus should change, making it less of me and more about them writing about their own experiences.
"I'm a music academic but, first and foremost, I'm a fan..."

Grab this!

BEAT SPECIAL 2: New music from the Hip Drop, beats and grooves from local producers and beat makers. Grab it here. Preview it below. It's a tasty mix of bent electro, bleepy hiphop and warped funk. Like it.

En Zed Internetz turn 21

Down to the wire is a great site presenting the history of the internet in NZ, year by year starting in 1989.

There's some great interview snippets, like Richard Ram talking about Flying Nun's Oz partner Mushroom, getting Roger Shepherd hooked up to email,and suggesting he group his emails together and send them over once a day. Seriously.

Also commentary from Russell Brown, Greer McDonald, Jack Yan and others talking about their own experiences. All nice short clips too. There's some fascinating contributions too from readers down the right hand side of each page.

I was even reminded of Pelican  Bar in Elliot st, run by the Wood brothers, which had a few computers sitting on the bar top hooked up to the internet (I recall playing some insanely packed shows there with the Picassos). The Wood brothers got out of bars and set up an ISP, Ihug, which did pretty good for them!

Snip: "Journalist Russell Brown recalls that, on a slow news day, all he had to do was call Nick Wood and keep him on the line until he, invariably, said something controversial – and a story was had."



Speaking of the Nun, each new daily post comes with a free MP3 from the Nun's archive - so far there's been 3Ds, Dimmer, JPSE, Look blue go purple, Bressa creeting cake and more. Great way to make yourselves a Flying Nun mixtape to boot.

Sunday, October 17, 2010

Splore doco screening

October 20th - Khuja Lounge, Auckland - 8pm. $5 entry - plus DJ support

 "The final installment of our "ThisCulture" film series brings you a special series of films focusing on New Zealand music produced by the crew from "Film The Music". The feature film is a brand new documentary shot at "Splore 2010". We will also be screening a selection of short documentaries from "Film The Music" and holding a Q&A session with their producer Jennifer Raoult.

"FilmTheMusic is a collaborative project created by two french filmakers and photographers, Jennifer Raoult and Sebastian Grounauer, who share a common passion for music and arts. We love to create unique moments of interaction with each artist consisting in short improvised video sessions, set in unexpected environments, No script, No rehearsal.

This 45min doco is an insight into our shared experiences with some amazing artists including Nickodemus, King Kapisi, Clap Clap Riot, Electric Wire Hustle, The Nukes, Dub FX, Mystro, Gaslamp Killer, Olmecha Supreme…"

Saturday, October 16, 2010

Ring The Alarm playlist, BaseFM, Sat Oct 16

Red Astaire - Follow me
George Benson and MAW - The ghetto/El barrio
Primal scream - Higher than the sun
Lightning head - Afro spot
Boozoo bajou - Camioux
Black seeds - Come to me - International observer remix
Suizen - Cartesian space - 4D mix (free download here)
Sister Nancy - Only woman DJ with degree
Roots radics - Lovers mood
Bob Marley - Mr Brown
Lee Scratch Perry - Holy angels
Gaz Rockin Blues - Got to be at the party
Austin Faithfull - I'm in a rocking mood
Roots Manuva and Wrongtom - Butterfly crab walk
Junk - 99c strut
Fitz and the Tantrums - Moneygrabber
Barry White - You're the first, the last, my everything
Aloe Blacc - Green lights
Kid Creole and the coconuts - Aniie I'm not your daddy - Soul mechanik edit
Pigbag - Papa's got a brand new pigbag
Sunlightsquare combo - I believe in miracles
Cookie monster and the girls - C is for cookie (disco mix, sweet version by Roy Thode)
Joi - If I'm lucky, I just might get picked up
Romanowski - Train song  -DJ Sureshot remix
RSD - Corner dub

Friday, October 15, 2010

Jet Jaguar

Jet Jaguar is one of the aliases of Kiwi producer and musician Michael Upton. His site is called Nonwrestler.com, and has a ton of music on it. His music is funky, bleepy downtempo and it's mighty nice. Here's a few slices.


Jet Jaguar vs Phoenix Foundation... listen below.

<a href="http://jetjag.bandcamp.com/album/jet-jaguar-remixes-the-phoenix-foundation">Jet Jaguar Remixes The Phoenix Foundation by Jet Jaguar</a>


Michael says "These are four remixes I worked on at length over 2004. There was talk of a vinyl release, but label-related stuff was label-related stuff. I'm pretty proud of the results, so I thought the least I could do was give them their own little home on the web."

A bit more recent, an album from late last year,  listen below. Title is "My Life In The Bush Out The Back Of My Place." Nice one

<a href="http://jetjag.bandcamp.com/album/my-life-in-the-bush-out-the-back-of-my-place">My Life In The Bush Out The Back Of My Place by Jet Jaguar</a>


And here's a wee exclusive only available as a free download on his site - Trinity Roots - Just like you - Jet Jaguar  remix.

There's a ton more great music to check out on the NonWrestler downloads page, including the Jet Jaguar remix of Awesome Feelings by Disasteradio.  Go have a nosey.

RIP Tony Peake

From Simon Grigg's blog. "A hugely influential figure in not only Christchurch’s but New Zealand’s music scene in the late 1970s and early 1980s, without whom large parts of the things we celebrate as New Zealand music would look very different. And a mate…..

" I issued one of the first two recordings from his later band, The Newtones, on Class of 81; the slightly twisted psychedelic pop of New Way. They then managed to manipulate the always manipulatable NZ charts and pushed their debut EP, which came in at least three different coloured sleeves, into the singles listings at number 13 in May of that year, causing a fluster at RIANZ central. Another single, My World, followed.

" I used to love his, often extended, visits to Auckland when we would talk music and just talk for hours; and, as much, craved the packages of singles, including my first real exposure to heavy Jamaican dub 12″s, he would send up from his incredible record store at Christchurch University. Taking advantage of an educational loophole in the draconian import laws in Muldoon’s New Zealand, it was for years the best record store in NZ, bar none.

"There is a quite wonderful and evocative piece on Tony’s bands at Mysterex."

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Poi poi twist

I went to the book launch for Blue Smoke last night. The evening featured a college jazz band, and speeches, of course. And music.

Author Chris Bourke was introduced by Tim Finn, who talked about some of the magnificent stories that he'd discovered from reading the book. Then Chris spoke, starting by saying "It's my party, so I may cry..."

He talked about some of the people who had helped him with the book, some of whom were there, like one elderly gentleman Chris introduced (I figured out it was Dennis Huggard, after referring to the acknowledgements), who had been collecting press clippings on jazz in New Zealand since he was young teen during the 2nd World War, and had over 9000 manilla folders full of them. Or another chap (Jim Warren, I believe) who had provided him with copies of Playdate magazine, which Chris explained to the young folk in the room, was a magazine published by movie house Kerridge Odeon, and had film reviews with jazz reviews in the back (written by Warren). Chris never saw it in his house, as he said the title Playdate was deemed to close to Playboy!

The venue for the book launch was the Gus Fisher Gallery in Shortland St, which has been home to York St Studios, TVNZ, and before that Radio NZ. Chris talked  about walking down to the launch via Greys Avenue, past the former site of the Picasso (a venue), and other sites where clubs had been. He was particularly glad the launch was happening in that space, as it had been home to Radio 1YA,  a station his mother had performed on with a choir.  He mentioned all the dancehalls that used to be in the main centres, with dances happening 6 nights a week. Even in Taranaki, there were over 200 dancehalls, said Chris, "...and if it wasn't for them, many of us wouldn't be here today."

He also talked about people he'd met along the way, who were no longer with us, like Prince Tui Teka. He also made mention of his former flatmate, Ian Morris, and told a few stories about him.

Then the formal part of the evening wrapped up with Simon Lynch taking over the keyboard and leading everyone in singing Blue Smoke, followed by Tom Sharplin taking the mic and singing Hoki Mai. A rousing singalong for a great book. And then people carried on....

Review of Blue Smoke by Graham Reid (NZ Herald/Elsewhere).
Blue Smoke, available online from Mighty Ape ($49.99)


Chris Bourke, at Blue Smoke book launch. Love the shirt!


The opening blurb in the book quotes a song lyric... "It's a Maori melody, come along and twist with me, Poi poi and twist the night away..."

Chirs talks in the book about various local spinoffs of the hit song The Twist (which NZ band the Keil Isles had a big hit with here, as radio decreed Chubby Checker's original was too noisy to play), and mentions one of the best was Rim D Paul and the Quin Tikis doing a song called Poi Poi Twist, which features that lyric.

I've got a version of that song by the Maori Hi Five (done on the HMV label, with Hippy Hippy Shake on the flip - this went to #4 on the Swedish charts in 1962, apparently), another showband of the same era. I've digitised the crackly old 45, and here it is below. Enjoy.

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

Trevor Reekie interviewed


"Its a kind of like the Simpsons making a snuff movie - you wonder why you're doing it sometimes." Trevor Reekie, on what it's like running a record label, 1998 interview.


Here's the illustrious Mr Reekie, interviewed from BFM's Seeded programme. Listen here. Trevor discovered and signed acts like Shihad, Bic Runga, Strawpeople, Greg Johnson and Pluto to name a few, to his Pagan Records label. He's a bloody talented chap and has been involved in more hit records than you've had hot breakfasts. Go and have a listen.

Their blurb: "Trevor Reekie was once described as “one of the NZ recording industry’s most important figures”, something he would no doubt dispute, despite the truth of it. The varied accomplishments of this all-rounder began in the 1970s. After he worked for the monumentally-important independent label Stiff Records in London, he brought knowledge and experience back to NZ and applied it to a series of independents: Stunn, Reaction, Pagan, and Antenna.

As a producer, he worked on records by artists including the Mockers and Danse Macabre; and as a multi-instrumentalist musician, was part of Car Crash Set, The Greg Johnson Band, and A Trip To The Moon.

In the last decade, Trevor has been “a music guy” at Radio New Zealand, hosting the in-depth music insider series Access All Areas, greatly contributing to maintaining all forms of popular music as "worthwhile culture...".


For more on Pagan Records amazing catalogue, read Simon Grigg's discography here, with additional notes from Trevor. 

Blue smoke


Chris Bourke's latest book is called Blue Smoke: The lost dawn of New Zealand music 1918-1964, and it hits the shops this week.  I've seen an advance copy and it looks like a fantastic read. Graham Reid reviewed it in the Weekend Herald (and on his blog, Elsewhere).

As Graham says, "Bourke has given us back an important part of our musical and social history, the soundtrack of which was in danger of being lost or barely audible.... Blue Smoke is a beautifully presented book which is reference text, bedside-table read and coffee table page-turner in one." 

 From Graham's review of Blue Smoke (via elsewhere.co.nz/NZHerald)...

".... As a writer he has a light and sometimes wry touch, he is generous and sympathetic to his subjects, and lets humour speak for itself while weaving though the facts.

“Hello My Dearie is an unlikely way to start a revolution,” he writes. “This light-hearted 1918 song, among others, launched New Zealand's first radio programme on 17 November 1921; it would bring the world into people's homes, and a world of music”.

Bourke had a challenge not faced by writers on more recent music: His subject was mostly live music, not recorded, and to his credit he captures telling detail to create the sense of being there when, for example, Anita Osborn in Christchurch in 1944 -- after being encouraged to sing one night in a dancehall – was instantly in demand.

“On Fridays, Osborn would get her hair set and bleached blonde – 'for a singer it had to be blonde' – and on Saturdays she would be back at the hairdressers to get her hair combed up again. Wartime clothing shortages meant it was difficult to get the material needed for a selection of especially made gowns, so her sisters helped by pooling their coupons.”

Whether it be recreating the atmosphere in the many sophisticated ballrooms in Auckland in the 30s (and some of the more sleazy ones later on) or taking the reader to a dance in a rural hall, Bourke is a reliable guide. The days of jazz and swing bands, men in bow-ties and woman in elegant gowns, sounds much more exciting than we have been lead to believe.

But Blue Smoke also includes other aspect of our history.

This is the author on the departure of the 28 Maori Battalion in May 1940: “The troop train bypassed Wellington railway station and went straight onto the wharf, with its windows shuttered. Families were cordoned off at Aotea Quay, and they were unable to watch or speak to the soldiers as they moved from the train onto the Aquitania during the night. Before dawn, women from Ngati Poneke were taken by bus onto the wharf; some in the crowd booed, but their turn would come.”

He then quotes Mihi Edwards of Ngati Poneke: “The Maori Battalion's last contact with its own people was the sight of the crowd allowed onto the wharf at the last moment, and the sound of the Ngati Poneke girls singing farewell songs as the distance widened between the ship and the shore.”

At such times – and they are on almost every one of these 400 pages – Blue Smoke resonates as a social history as much as that of music and entertainers.

While the nascent “jazz” and swing bands provide the atmosphere in the days before rock'n'roll, it is Maori artists – solo, in various bands from jazz to country, or in showbands – who are the spine of this book. Maori songs, and many with Maori references in the title (Dear Old Maoriland, Maori Eyes, Kia Ngawari and Beneath the Maori Moon in the 20s), run like a refrain throughout.
Ana Hato and Deane Waretini in the 20s; The Tahiwis who recorded in te reo in Australia in the 30s; the Ratana brass bands; Ruru Kariatiana and 19-year old singer Pixie Williams (in her hockey uniform) recording Blue Smoke in October 1949, the first locally written, recorded and released New Zealand song . . .

And beyond to Ray Paparoa (Pukekohe's Elvis) and Johnny Cooper, the Maori Cowboy, recording our first rock'n'roll song, a cover of Bill Haley's Rock Around the Clock.

And Bourke is inclusive.

Country music has rarely been hip or fashionable, but it has always been popular, if beyond the interest of most broadcasters. Yet Bourke explores this long strand through characters like Fred Mayfield's Cowboy Band who filled Auckland's Majestic Theatre in the late 20s, Pete Kloss in the late 30s (“New Zealand's yodelling cowboy”) and the irrepressible Tex Morton (songs, hypnotism and target shooting in the same show) who in the late 30s was selling more records than any other international artist in Australia and New Zealand, and more than all Australian artists combined.

Such facts – which can pull you up – are woven through this extraordinary narrative which comes with a visual treasury of evocative period photographs, concert posters, reproductions of labels from the middle of old 78 and 45 discs, and album covers.

Blue Smoke is a beautifully presented book which is reference text, bedside-table read and coffee table page-turner in one. Chris Bourke has given us back an important part of our musical and social history, the soundtrack of which was in danger of being lost or barely audible.

A remarkable achievement and a marvelous book which sings and swings off every page.

RIP Solomon Burke


The legendary soul singer (and mortician) passed away on Sunday, at Schiphol Airport in in Amsterdam, aged 70.

From the New York Times obituary...

"... Drawing on gospel, country and gritty rhythm and blues in songs like “Cry to Me” (1962), “You Can Make It if You Try” (1963) and “Everybody Needs Somebody to Love” (1964), Mr. Burke developed a vocal style that was nuanced yet forceful. Steeped in church traditions from a young age, he could make a sermon out of any situation, as in “The Price” from 1964, a catalog of the wages of a bad romance. (“You cost me my mother/The love of my father/Sister/My brother too.”)

In a genre known for outsize personalities and flamboyant showmanship, Mr. Burke stood out for his sheer boldness and eccentricity. A radio D.J. crowned him the King of Rock and Soul in 1964, and Mr. Burke took the coronation to heart. For the rest of his career, he often performed in full royal habit — crown, scepter and robe — and sat on a golden throne onstage. Wide-shaped in his youth, he grew into Henry VIII-like corpulence, and in his later years had to be wheeled to his throne.

An ordained minister, licensed mortician, resourceful entrepreneur and champion raconteur, Mr. Burke inspired almost as much amazement with his offstage persona as he did with his music. A biography on his website says that he had 21 children, 90 grandchildren and 19 great-grandchildren. “I got lost on one of the Bible verses that said, ‘Be fruitful and multiply,’ ” he once said. “I didn’t read no further.”

His career revival began in the 1980s, helped by Hollywood: “Everybody Needs Somebody to Love” was featured in “The Blues Brothers” in 1980, and in 1987 “Cry to Me” had a prominent role in “Dirty Dancing.” He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2001, and in 2002 he released “Don’t Give Up on Me” (Fat Possum/Anti-), with songs by Brian Wilson, Tom Waits, Bob Dylan and others written for Mr. Burke.

He never stopped touring or making records. His most recent album, “Nothing’s Impossible” — his first and last collaboration with the celebrated producer Willie Mitchell, who died in January — was released on the E1 label in April. On Sunday he had flown to Amsterdam to perform a sold-out concert there with a Dutch band, De Dijk."

Monday, October 11, 2010

TMD Crew fundraiser



This looks like a very cool event.  TMD are some of the finest graff artists in Aotearoa - get along and support em!

 "Come join New Zealand’s most internationally renown crew TMD, as they exhibit new works in an epic one off show, fundraising to attend Primary Flight 2010 in Miami.  Thirteen breathtaking works will be on display, each 2.4m x 2.4m and range from aerosol art to large print photographs. All works will be available for sale for one night only – so don’t miss your chance!

Featured artists: Askew, Dskyes, Phat1, Lady Diva, Vans the Omega, Oche, Saves aka Dyle52, Pest5, Deus, Ryze, Has, Berst, Kost and Rimoni.

Bringing a unique twist to the event is the inclusion of the Auckland Youth Orchestra who will be providing entertainment on the night. There will also be domestic air-fare giveaways provided by Grabaseat, drawn from those that purchase works on the night!  Dress up for the occasion, this is guaranteed to be like no other graffiti art event staged in New Zealand to date.

The show will open at 7pm with the works unveiled at 9pm.  All sales go towards getting TMD to Primary Flight.  Tickets $25.00 (incl. booking fee) and are available from iTICKET and Conch Records.

Thursday, 21st October 2010
Shed 6, Upper Deck, 90 Wellesley St, Auckland City
Starts 7pm – Work unveiled at 9pm

Unitone Hifi chicha bizznizz

Spied this over at Stinky Jims Stink Inc blog - a wicked remix of his band Unitone Hifi, from Kinky Electric Noise. Grab it quick.

Unitone HiFi - Hang On (Kinky Electric Noise Chicha Remix) by Kinky Electric Noise

Fly Lo

Flying Lotus interview... shot at his appearance at Chicago’s North Coast Music Festival


Flying Lotus @ North Coast Music Festival from Cam Be on Vimeo.

Adrock interview

Via Crate Kings... "Propellerhead's interview with Adrock of the Beastie Boys. He tells the story of buying his first drum machine, a Roland TR-808, with $250 [it was a toss up between a Rickenbaker guitar like Paul Weller for the Jam, or the drum machine...], discovering LL Cool J, creating pause tapes, the rise of the Beastie Boys, and being sued by The Jimmy Castor Bunch for their use of “Hey Leroy”."

Saturday, October 09, 2010

Ian Morris farewelled

From Hawkes Bay Today, an editorial "It's a poorer place without Ian Morris". Read it here.

Also, Simon Grigg remembers Ian's work as a studio engineer and producer, for the likes of Hello Sailor (that's his production on Gutter Black), DD Smash, Greg Johnson, The Warratahs, Pop Mechanix, Southside of Bombay, Screaming Meemees and more.

"...An Ian Morris production was noticeably and identifiably an “Ian Morris” record. They had a sound and it was a sound that worked. For me, he produced the only album by The Screaming Meemees. The sessions were uproarious – rather out of control and bourbon soaked. It was at these that he met Kim, his wife.

I talked to him several times over the years about remixing these, as recently as a few months ago – it was his idea, as he felt the album was unfinished and didn’t want to leave it that way, although I guess that’s the way it will now stay.

However, when we remastered Paradise for digital release late last year, the remasterer, Alan Jansson, no studio slouch himself, was blown away by the audio depth and quality of the recording (also a tribute to the original engineer, Steve Kennedy) of the original which still sounds as vaguely ahead of its time as it did when released..."

Ian's own website has some great writing on his studio work, including the tale of two snaredrums (Gutter black/Game of Love). What a loss.

Everyday sunshine


Fishbone were a huge influence on my old band, Hallelujah Picassos. Our former manager Lisa hipped me to this film, a documentary on the band. Fishbone formed in1979 when the members were in junior high school in South Central Los Angeles. From the San Francisco Chronicle.

"Fishbone might be the only African American punk band you could name. It has always stayed a bit underground, but that's the way the band members want to play it. They broke stereotypes, exerted wide influence, yet refused to play by recording labels' rules and paid a heavy price for it. There was also a bit of self-destruction as well.

"In the '80s, there was this kind of Hollywood scene of people that were huge fans of Fishbone," said San Francisco documentarian Chris Metzler, whose film "Everyday Sunshine: The Story of Fishbone," makes its Bay Area premiere this month at the Mill Valley Film Festival and DocFest in San Francisco.

"John Cusack, Tim Robbins, Chris Rock, David Arquette. We found out that Laurence Fishburne was the closest to the band. He'd let them crash at his place in LA or New York. The way he knew of the band is he was a bouncer in this club in Hollywood, and heard Fishbone onstage and was like, 'Who are these brothers?'


Among the down periods was in 1993, when founding member Norwood Fisher tried to help a band member succumbing to mental illness, and ended up being tried on kidnapping charges. Another original member, Angelo Moore, was forced to move in with his mother.
So did the band like the film?

"They came and saw it at the Los Angeles Film Festival, where we debuted" in June, Metzler said. "I think seeing it in front of the audience, seeing people laughing, being emotionally wrenched at the end of the film - Norwood likes the movie, but Angelo loves the movie. He's just like, 'That's my life! That's what it is.' This is the trials and travails of trying to be an aging punk rocker into your 40s."


Mike Park has seen Fishbone 173 times.  He talks about the first time he saw them and the impact it had on him here.

Who is Mr Brown?

He's Len Brown - the mayor of the new supercity. Is Mr Brown controlled by remote, asks Bob....

Ring The Alarm playlist, BaseFM, Sat Oct 9

Oluko Umo - Praise Jah
Milton Hamilton - We have all the time
Keith Mansfield - Crash course
DJ Spinna - Dilla is the G.O.A.T
Sharon Jones and the Dapkings  - Better things
Temptations - Plastic man
Jackie Mittoo - Totally together
Black seeds - Make a move - Downtown Brown remix
Chaka Demus and Pliers - Murder she wrote
Mos dub - History town
Johnny Osbourne - Budy bye - Kenny Dope remix
War - Me and baby brother
Scritti politti - Absolute - Version
Tex Pistol - Game of love
Gladys Knight - It's better than good time - Walter Gibbons mix
Sylvia - Sweet stuff
Hypnotic brass ensemble - Alyo
DJ Vadim - Hidden treasure
Noel Ellis - Stop your fighting
Hollie Smith - Hiding - Dub Asylum remix
Manasseh - Dubbing the gorgon
Gregory Peck - Pocoman jam
Foxy Brown - Fast car
Rhombus feat Rodney P - The bubble - Dub terminator mix
Oogun - Fuss n fight
Shaggy feat Barrington Levy - Broadway
Guinness Steel City Symphony Band - Sir duke
Eru Dangerspiel - Chilli moules
Richie Phoe - Eyes on the prize dub

Friday, October 08, 2010

RIP Ian Morris (Th Dudes, Tex Pistol)

I heard this late last night via Twitter and hoped it wasn't true. Sadly, it is. NZ Herald story here. Much love to his family and friends at this sad time.





UPDATE: Statement from Peter Urlich (Via NZH)

"At this moment I'm waiting to wake from a terrible dream. I have just lost my oldest and dearest friend, Ian Morris.

The cruel fact is that only in these moments, do you truly realise how important a mate like that is. If I were a house, one side of me has just collapsed.

Ian was one of the foundations of me. He possessed a talent that I was in awe of; he had a staggering intelligence that had few equals; his mind was scalpel sharp but his heart was soft; and we shared a sense of humour that I thought we would trade until we were wizened old men. (I recognise these attributes also in David Joseph Dobbyn).

The two of them found each other in Form 1, Sacred Heart College, 1968 - a pair of slightly nervous freshmen, who only had music to fight off the bullies. And I found them at the same time.

Thank God! I cannot begin to accurately describe what those two men mean to me. And now one of them has gone. Ian, I loved the way you played guitar, I loved the way you played with my boys Joe and Stan: I loved your immaculate taste in music.

I cherished that we were so in tune that we didn't need words.

Thank you for all of your wisdom. I can't remember when you were actually wrong. Thank you for your the fact that you would have forgiven me anything. That goes for me too.

And thank you so much for choosing me to be your lead singer."


UPDATE 2: Morris had two number one chart hits as Tex Pistol - the tune above, and Nobody Else, on Trevor Reekie's label Pagan Records.  These release notes are from Simon Grigg's extensive discography of the Pagan catalogue, with notes by Trevor.

PAG 1013Tex Pistol - Ballad of Buckskin Bob / I Don’t Know What Came Over Me / Winter (June 86) Ian Morris. Chris Bourke sold me on Tex. I knew he was gonna do us good but it wasn’t gonna be this one but we managed to get Winter into a film.


PAG 1030Tex Pistol - The Game of Love / Boot Hill drag (87) The old Mindbenders hit. Our first number one single and radio lapped it up.


PAG 1038Tex Pistol - Nobody Else / Wilf (May 88) I convinced Ian Morris to make this recording he’d done with Rikki to be part of Tex Pistol. Then we found Paul Middleditch, a 20 year old genius video maker to make what is still a fantastic video. Went to number one. By this time I’d bought the label from the receivers.


PAG 1048 Tex Pistol and Rikki Morris - Come Back Louise / Notting Hill Shuffle (89) By this time the tall poppy thing was clobbering us big time.

Hollie Smith remix


Ms Hollie Smith has a remix competition on at the moment, and I've cooked up a Dub Asylum remix for it, all reggae-styles. Have a listen, and if you like it, please vote for it. Thanks

Wednesday, October 06, 2010

Eat more bran

Screamin Jay Hawkins and Serge Gainsbourg, piano duel. Watch Jay howl and moan as Serge grins his head off, trying not to laugh.

Tuesday, October 05, 2010

Flying Nun flashback



Spotted via Dubber... Flying Nun have just released their first new vinyl release in over 15 years this week  -Form, the latest album from Die Die Die. Read about the process of getting vinyl out back in the day here, on Flying Nun's blog.

Monday, October 04, 2010

NZ Music Awards get Sweetman'd

Music reviewer and Stuff.co.nz blogger Simon Sweetman wrote a piece today on the NZ Music Awards and his disgust for it. It's worth noting that he was also a judge this year (and yet he claims he isn't part of the music industry - go figure). There were several points he makes in the piece which are factually incorrect - I did try to post them as comments on his blog but they didn't get published, as is their choice.

Sweetman has a go at the Critics Choice Prize, saying "the winner was supposed to be a band that did not have an album out at the time of judging. Two of the three finalists released their albums within weeks of the judging..." Wrong. This award was for bands who did not have an album out during the eligibility period  -June 1 2009 to May 31 2010, not at the time of judging (see NZMA eligibilty criteria).

He also says "There were also meant to be two showcase gigs - one in Wellington and one in Christchurch. A chance to take a part of the awards show on the road, to take it out of Auckland; in the end these shows never happened." Why was that? Because there was an earthquake in Christchurch which made them no longer viable. Left that bit out, aye Simon?

Best part - he slags off Dane Rumble, Gin, Ladyhawke, then highlights his critical darlings, the Phoenix Foundation - but fails to mention they have the most nominations of any act at this years awards.

Sunday, October 03, 2010

Real Groove is goneburgers


Friday saw the demise of Real Groove magazine, as its publishers, Tangible Media, said they were merging it into the weekly free magazine, Groove Guide. Longtime contributor Gary Steel wrote a piece on it at witchdoctor.co.nz, called Real Gone.

Steel says that "it changed markedly with each successive editor. Both [former editors] John Dix and Nick Bollinger reflected Real Groovy’s roots-music bias, but it grew bigger, got a cover price, got glossier and larger in format, and eventually attempted to become a general culture bible in addition to a music magazine. It had elements of Mojo and Uncut, but reflected its smaller demographic by trying valiantly to be all things to all people."

I totally agree with him that the columns were "the real guts of Real Groove ...  it did have a bunch of specialists in different genres writing with passion and knowledge in a section of columns, and ... I think this section was really the best part of the magazine, and the one that will be most missed." I loved reading what columnists like Kerry Buchanan, Troy Ferguson, and Stinky Jim had to say every month. Fantastically opinionated writing from such hugely knowledgeable folk was a delight. 

Former editor Duncan Greive weighs in over at deadball.co.nz.  He notes that the magazine departs on its 18th birthday,with the final issue, with Leonard Cohen on the cover, hitting newstands now. Oddly enough the magazine has had a redesign, and looks a lot like Rolling Stone and Uncut. It's a strange look to go out on, but I suspect the staff probably didn't know it was the mag's swansong when they were putting it together.

Duncan talks about the magazine's circulation, and its perception in the marketplace among punters. He talks about battling the effects of the internet, and ad sales declining.

"... The final issue, with Leonard Cohen on the cover, is a pretty impressive way to bow out. It looks fantastic, design-wise, and seems to have settled into a groove (argh) which might have actually worked, had it been allowed to continue. A local answer to Uncut et al might have worked (though as others have pointed out, those publications’ ad pages are thin and unglamourous), with an equal engagement with the past and the future, targeting the people who still spend money on music.

" That was always Tangible’s plan for the publication, one which I definitely didn’t engage with beyond bowing to the suggestion that U2 grace the cover (then immaturely struggling to restrain my glee when it tanked at the news-stand). Given six more months to truly define the role and get the market to buy in maybe the story ends very differently .... But the demise itself was never in question, in my opinion, no matter what well-intentioned sales people, editors, publishers and more tried to do. It was the date which remained in play until now. Whether magazines can continue to limp on until some new technology or system makes them viable is an open question."

UPDATE Wednesday 6 Oct: More Real Groove tributes from former writers Joe Nunweek and Dan Trevarthen.

Stoppress.co.nz also carried a story about Real Groove's closure, based on some wildly  inaccurate information which I understand was a press release provided by Tangible Media. "When Tangible Media purchased the Groove titles after Real Groovy went into liquidation in 2008, the magazine couldn’t continue to be propped up by the music store."

Former General Manager at Real Groovy, Steve Richards, bought Real Groove off Real Groovy way before the liquidation and started up Groove Media as their publisher, and was successfully running nthe mags without being propped up by the stores., which were clearly doing badly then. I remember when  Real Groovy went into liquidation thinking that at least Real Groove would survive the fallout, as it was no longer part of the shops.

R.I.P. Richard Griffey (Solar Records)

Photo: LA Times (taken in 1973)

"Richard Griffey, the founder of the Los Angeles-based R&B record label Solar (Sound Of Los Angeles Records), died at the age of 71 of complications from quadruple-bypass heart surgery that he underwent last year (read more about Griffey’s life in The LA Times' obituary).

"From 1977 when Griffey founded the label, which stands for Sounds of Los Angeles Records, through its peak in the 1980s, the label quickly earned its moniker, “the Motown of the '80s,” for its stable of artists.

"Acts like the Whispers, Shalamar (featuring Jody Watley and Howard Hewett), Klymaxx, Midnight Star and the Deele (featuring Antonio "L.A." Reid and Babyface Edmonds) all have Griffey’s imprint on them. His hits are inescapable, with classics including “Fantastic Voyage,” “And the Beat Goes On,” “Rock Steady” and “Tender Lover.” The string of success led to Griffey being pegged "the most promising new black music executive," which The Times reported in 1980.

The R&B, funk and soul jams his acts crafted laid the foundation for the early-1990s G-funk West Coast flavor of Snoop Dogg, Dr. Dre and Warren G, among others. Edmonds said it was all part of Griffey’s genius." LA Time Pop and Hiss blog

Griffey got his start in the music business as a nightclub owner and promoter. He became the talent co-ordinator on the tv show Soul Train, working with host and producer Don Cornelius. His last ten years were spent mostly in Africa, where he went to promote music but stayed because he "was touched by the poverty and felt that he could make a difference," his daughter said.

Diplo profiled

Nice little mini-documentary on DJ/producer Diplo from film maker Wing-Yee Wu... (hat tip to Duncan Blair for the link)...

Fave quote: "as a producer I still don't have a lot of confidence but I think that grows... you can grow up as a producer a lot more than you can as a dj, that's a logical progression"

Saturday, October 02, 2010

Ring The Alarm playlist, BaseFM, Sat Oct 2

Chaka Khan - Love of a lifetime - extended dance mix
Chairmen of the board - Life and death - Danny Krivit edit
Gwen Guthrie - Padlock - Larry Levan mix
Galaxy - Visions of tomorrow
Jackie Mittoo - Grand funk
The Topics - Louie louie
Major Lazer - Can't stop now
MIA - It takes a muscle
Western roots  - Bogus buddy
Sounds unlimited - Roadrunner
Nambo and Ian Hird - Universal horns
Lee Scratch Perry - Used to drive a tractor in Negrille
Muhsinah feat 00Genesis - Always
Mr Chop - Shut em down
Lee Fields and the expressions - Ladies
Roy Ayers - Love will bring us together
Jody Watley  -Saturday night experience
Kinny and Horne - Why me
Mario's tuna - Waste of money
Rosalia De Sousa - Maria Moita
Rebel MC - Wickedest sound - Don Gorgon mix
Ragga twins - Love talk
Rockers delight - Moments in dub
Thievery Corporation - 38 45 (a thievery number)